That Fateful Night
by Shards of Dimond
Summary: COMPLETED After the Willow incident Sirius is being ignored. What happens when Lily runs into Remus on the night of a full moon and Sirius tries to save her? How much will it take for Sirius to be forgiven?
1. Taking Action

**That Fateful Night**

_Disclaimer: Don't own it._

_A/N: This was going to be a one shot, but it got kinda long so I split it up . It's my first fic, so be nice please. Criticism is accepted. No flames please (like cussing me out)_

_CHAPTER ONE_

Sirius sat near the fire in his common room watching his friends play exploding snap, deliberately ignoring him. It had been almost a month since the werewolf incident with Snape, and come to think of it, tonight was a full moon. His friends hadn't talked to him since and he doubted he would be able to be with Remus, James, and Peter tonight.

He had tried everything to gain their forgiveness, but nothing worked. Finally he just stopped trying. He found himself falling into a deep depression. He sat alone during classes and meals and couldn't, or he wouldn't dare, bum notes off of Remus like he and James had done so many times.

Sirius closed his eyes when he heard his three friends burst into laughter once again. How much was he expected to take? Each smile and laugh was like a knife to his heart. He got up quickly and rushed from the common room, head hanging low.

Lily looked up, seeing Sirius practically run form the common room. She was quite curios about this situation. The three murderous glares Remus, James, and Peter gave Sirius's retreating form confirmed her suspicions. Something was defiantly up.

O.O.O.O.O

Sirius returned about an hour later, looking pale, tired, and utterly depressed. Lily noticed the look of longing he gave the remaining Marauders who were seated around the fire, talking quietly. It was amazing how fast the eternally jubilant Marauder fell into depression. She needed to talk to James.

James looked up as she approached and quickly ran a hand through his hair. "Hey Evans," he said, standing to greet her. "You staying during the spring holiday?"

"Yes, but that's not what I came over here to talk about. And no, I don't want to go out with you," Lily added when James opened his mouth. He quickly shut it with a quiet 'oh'. "I was wondering what is up with you guys and Sirius. Did you guys get in a fight or something?"

James's face darkened at the mention of Sirius's name. "Yeah you could say that," he said coldly. He glanced at Remus who was glaring at the staircase Sirius had just walked up. Lily knew she wasn't going to get anymore information out of them.

O.O.O.O.O

Sirius entered his dorm and walked over to his bed, which James and Remus had pushed off into a corner on the far end of the room. He didn't blame them.

Tomorrow was the last day before the break. He knew the rest of the Marauders were staying, but he doubted he was welcome. He figured he would just stay out of their way. Heck, he would sleep in the common room if he had to. He sat on his bed with a sigh and wondered how in the world he was going to get his friends' trust back.

O.O.O.O.O

Lily walked tentatively up the steps leading to the boys dorms. She knew it was against the rules, but she really needed to talk to Sirius.

At the top she peaked into the doorway and saw Sirius lying on his bed with his arm over his eyes.

"Are you leaving tomorrow?" she asked quietly. He jumped and whipped around to face the doorway, obviously to caught up in his thoughts to hear her come in.

"Maybe." His answer was short, no emotion evident in his voice.

"Oh," Lily scuffed her foot on the wooden floor, knowing that the subject she was going to bring up might be touchy. "What's up with you, Remus, James, and Peter?"

His grey eyes turned icy. "Nothing. You shouldn't be in the boys dorms anyway." With that he brushed past her and into the common room again.

Lily sighed. _Well that didn't work._

O.O.O.O.O

Lily walked into the common room later just as Professor McGonagall was taking Remus out. _Full moon._ Remus had told her he was a werewolf at the beginning of the year. It didn't matter to her though.

She looked over at James and Peter who were bent over an old looking piece of parchment and laughing quietly every once in a while. Sirius was in the far corner 'working' on what looked like a History of Magic essay, judging by the fact that he was sound asleep on top of a huge textbook with a quill loosely held in his hand.

Lily took out her own essay figuring she could get it done before the break.

O.O.O.O.O

_BANG!_

Lily gasped and almost fell out of her chair when she was awoken by the sound of the common room door banging shut. She looked around confused at first because she was sitting in the common room at...however late it was.

She looked down to see her half completed History of Magic essay, realizing with a smile that it had put her to sleep too. She got up and stretched, preparing to go up to her room and resume sleeping.

She noticed that Sirius was still sleeping soundly on his text and snoring slightly, but it looked like James and Peter went off to bed. She gathered her books and walked past the table the other two boys were sitting at when something caught her eye. It was the parchment James and Peter were looking at. She was going to ignore it, but curiosity got the better of her.

As she neared it, she saw it was a map. Under further investigation she realized it was a map of Hogwarts. It had red dots labeling where everyone in the castle was. She quickly found the Gryffindor common room…and sure enough! There she was! And Sirius too! But…she looked at the area where James and Peter were supposed to be and found it empty. _Where did they go?_

Three fast moving dots got her attention on the grounds. She looked and to her horror they were labeled James Potter, Peter Pettigrew, and Remus Lupin.

"Oh no!" She cried, louder than she meant to, and bolted from the common room, the map falling from her hands. _I have to help them! _

O.O.O.O.O

Sirius awoke with a jolt when someone cried out. He got up just in time to see the common room door close. He walked to the staircase, figuring it was just James and Peter leaving. Just then he stepped on something that gave a soft crunch, like paper. Looking down he saw his foot resting on the Marauder's Map.

To his horror, he saw that James and Peter had forgotten to hide the writing. He looked and saw a dot sprinting to the Entrance Hall. It was labeled 'Lily Evans.' And out on the grounds were James, Peter, and Remus. _She doesn't know we're Animagus!_(A/N: Animagus's…animagi…?)_ She must have seen the map and thought James and Peter were in trouble._

Without a second thought he left for the grounds. He knew James and Peter could not hold Remus back when he smelled a human.

O.O.O.O.O

_Like it? I'll put up chapter two soon…almost done. Please leave a review! Excuse any spelling/grammar mistakes…I don't have anyone to edit it… The next one will be more exciting I promise._

_**Coming Up**: Sirius and Remus fight! Oooh the action! The drama:P_


	2. Consequences

**That Fateful Night**

_Disclaimer: same as before_

_A/N: smacks head BAD AUTHOR! VERY BAD! Sorry I didn't update in forever…_

_CHAPTER TWO_

Sirius burst through the front doors, transforming in mid-step. He heard a struggle up ahead and Remus's blood thirsty howl. He went into a dead run.

They were near the Forbidden forest and James was currently kicking Remus back with his hooves. One of his legs was torn and bloody, and Sirius noted that it must be broken. Suddenly Remus bashed James with one of his huge front paws. Sirius quickened his pace as he heard something crack and saw that James could not rise, his front leg was bent at an odd angle.

Panting, Remus turned to Lily who screamed stumbled backwards. Remus howled and pounced. He did not land on Lily, as he intended, but collided with a huge shaggy dog in mid air.

Sirius snarled and fought the wolf down to the ground. He sent an urgent bark to Lily, trying to tell her to run while she still could. He chanced a quick glance and noticed she was sobbing slightly and clutching her ankle. _This is great,_ Sirius thought as he tried to keep Remus at bay.

O.O.O.O

Lily couldn't keep back her tears. She was normally a tough girl, but she had never felt so scared and helpless in her life. She crawled over to the stag, seeing if it was still alive. She was relieved to see it was living, and conscious at that.

She reached out tentatively and stroked the stag's head. Its eyes locked on hers. Hazel eyes. Strangely familiar. Then it all clicked for her.

"James?" she whispered. If stags could smile he would have. This explained everything! He was an Animagus! She praised herself for her quick wit. A loud yelp caught her attention. The black dog seemed to be losing strength and it struggled to keep Remus away from her. It gave her another desperate bark, but there was no way for Lily to make it out. Her ankle burned and she doubted she could even stand. She could only watch in horror.

The dog once again pounced on the back of the giant wolf, trying to get a grip on the furry neck, causing the wolf to jump up a bit as he clawed at the dog on his back. They were locked in battle, the dog barely keeping the wolf from reaching Lily and clawing her apart. Sirius was thrown to the ground once again and Remus bounded at Lily, mouth foaming. Sirius could only bite the wolf's tail and try and pull him back.

Enraged the wolf whipped around and bit deep into the dog's throat, holding him down as he convulsed. Suddenly, when it seemed Sirius would lose the battle, a howl sounded deep in the woods. Remus jerked his head up and bolted after the noise.

Seeing Remus was gone, James transformed and slowly sat up.

"James, are you ok?" Lily asked as she crawled near him.

"Fine," he said through clenched teeth, holding his arm to his chest. "You?"

A small whimper sounded from a distance away, cutting off Lily's answer.

"Oh my god! Sirius!" James crawled as quickly as he could to his wounded friend who had just transformed. Lily followed, as quickly as she could without putting any weight on her ankle.

Sirius was in rough condition. Scratch that. He was close to dieing. Too close. James knelt next to his friend, and unwanted tears started to drip down his cheeks when he saw the damage that had been done.

Sirius was covered in gashes and bite marks, especially on his stomach, back, and neck, and James could even see a bone sticking out of his arm it had been broken so badly. Suddenly Sirius's eyes snapped open.

"J-James?" He couldn't say anymore because blood started to bubble from his mouth, cutting his words short. James pulled Sirius up into a sitting position so he wouldn't choke, wincing as he heard Sirius groan.

"It's going to be ok now Siri. We'll get help. Just stay with me ok?" James asked, surprised that his voice didn't quiver with the fear that was eating at him.

"M'sry…it was stupid…didn't mean to hurt Rem…" He said coughing up blood, his whole entire body convulsing.

"It's ok! It doesn't matter. Lily can you get help?" James looked at her with panic filled eyes. Lily tried to stand but fell as a jolt of pain shot up from her ankle.

Suddenly Peter came stumbling from the forest.

"Did that work? He left, right?" He asked nervously, referring to the howl he made in the woods.

"Pete! You have to go to the castle and get help. We need Madam Pomfrey!" James yelled from his spot at Sirius's side. With a glance at Sirius Peter nodded and took off at a sprint.

James pressed some cloth against the worst of Sirius's wounds, helping to stem the blood flow. "Hang on Siri. Peter's getting help, ok?" Sirius began to cough again, which was not the answer James had wanted.

"James," he rasped, "Tell Rem…I'm sorry…and s'not…his fault." He turned his head up to look James in the eye. "Ok?"

All James could do was nod. He could hardly breath around the lump in his throat. Sirius began to cough again, gasping for air around the wound on his neck. His eyes rolled and he began to stiffen in James's arms.

"Sirius no! Don't give up! They're coming to help." Sirius continued hacking, his hand clamped onto James's robes as he became deprived of oxygen. A tear snaked it's way down his cheek as blood started coming from his nose as well. His breaths became shallow and frantic.

Both James and Lily were sobbing now. "I'm sorry Sirius…I'm so sorry," James whispered. They heard a few shouts coming from the school.

"Peter's coming with some of the teachers!" Lily cried pointing in their direction. James hardly heard this because it was at that moment when Sirius went completely limp.

O.O.O.O

_A/N: Well that chappie was stinky. Sorry. Hmmmm…to kill or not to kill? What do you guys think? Should I kill him off? Or do the whole dramatic recovery thing? I have an idea…hehehehe_

_Thanks to my…reviewer._

_Jojo: You have the absolute honor cough cough of being my only reviewer! Thank you so much for saying something, it really made me happy. I love Sirius, even though he does do some really stupid things. Just adds to his charm!_


	3. Aftermath

**That Fateful Night**

_Diaclamer: not mine_

_A/N: Here again…I think this will be the last chappie…as far as killing Siri off, well you'll have to read and see! _

_CHATPER THREE_

Peter scrambled up the step and through the oak doors leading to the school. He ripped around a corner and ran right into Professor McGonagall, who was leaving her office.

"Mr. Pettigrew! What is the meaning of this?"

Peter tried to catch his breath before answering. "James and Sirius…outside on the grounds…they're gonna die!" He started off in the direction of the hospital wing. "I need to get Madam Pomfrey."

McGonagall, recognizing the severity of the situation, lead Peter into her office and they summoned the nurse from her fire. After a few urgent words from Peter they were heading to the grounds.

O.O.O.O

"No…nonono!" James shook Sirius, hoping to restore some life in him. "He's not breathing…he's not…" James couldn't believe it. _He's not dead. Not Sirius! He can't be!_

"Wait! Move!" Lily pushed James away and laid Sirius on the ground. She opened his mouth and plugged his nose and…kissed him?

"What are you doing?" James shouted, tears still leaking down his face. Lily lifted her head and began pushing his chest.

"Muggle technique. Called CPR. It might get him to start breathing again." She lowered herself down and breathed into him again. "Come on…" She tried again and again, forcing air into him and pushing his chest up and down, up and down. James gave a choked sob as blood began to dribble from Sirius's mouth.

He grabbed one of his friends bloodstained hands. It was cold.

"Mr. Potter? Mr. Black?" It was McGonagall. Lily stepped aside as Madam Pomfrey ran to Sirius, wand at the ready.

"Oh Merlin," McGonagall whispered as she gazed at the wounded Gryffindor. You could hardly see his face through the blood.

James was sobbing, Lily was shaking, wide-eyed, and Peter seemed frozen, just staring at his friend. Madam Pomfrey rose, shaking her head.

She looked straight at James. "I'm sorry. He is dead." Her voice choked as a tear ran down her cheek. "There is nothing more we can do."

Peter fell to his knees and Lily began to sob in earnest. James ran to his friend, despite his wounds, and cradled him in his arms.

All he remembered after that was being dragged away from Sirius and back to the castle.

O.O.O.O

James woke in the hospital wing. _What happened this time? Where's Sir—_his thoughts were cut short as the memory of the previous night crashed into him. Sirius was dead. He would never be able to talk with him again. Or plan pranks in the middle of Transfiguration or see who could get the most detentions in one day.

He felt as though someone had grabbed his heart and wrenched it out. He couldn't even _breathe._

Dumbledore walked in. He asked James what had happened and James had muttered something about being attacked in the forest. Dumbledore did not press the matter.

Peter had gone out during the night and brought Remus back to the shack. Remus had been told that morning. They were just waiting for James to wake up.

James looked up as Remus and Peter entered the room quietly. Remus walked in and sat beside him, Peter on his other side. James opened his mouth to say something but no words came out. He looked straight at Remus and saw the agony in his gaze. All they could do was cry.

O.O.O.O

The funeral was held on a Thursday.

Almost half of Hogwarts had attended, all lamenting the loss of the particularly jubilant Marauder. James was surprised to see the amount of people Sirius had touched. The Gryffindors were devastated.

Dumbledore began to speak but his words were lost to James. All James cared about was that small mahogany coffin that held his best mate. His brother. He was surprised to find his cheeks dry. Remus had silent tears running down his cheeks as did Peter. Yet James only gazed at the coffin and remembered.

…_James and Sirius were whispering over their cauldron in the middle of Potions as Remus sliced the ingredients. No one knew what they were talking about, but judging be Sirius's frequent glances at the Slytherins and evil grin, it couldn't be good…_

…_It was a nice day and their last class, Charms, had been canceled because of a "magical malfunction" that blew up half the corridor. The Marauders found themselves outside, in the shade of a tree by the lake. Sirius was resting on his back, tossing a rock up and down, listening to Remus attempt to explain a complicated spell to Peter…_

…_James and Sirius had been sneaking about the corridors trying to put the final tweaks on a prank for the Slytherins. Somewhere, between the dungeons and the Gryffindor common room Sirius had gotten it in his head that he could climb up one of the gargoyles that adorned the walls of Hogwarts. McGonagall's face was priceless when she turned the corner to find Sirius Black hanging upside down with the heel of his foot caught in a gargoyle's mouth…_

James felt a smile twitch at the corners of his mouth at those memories.

O.O.O.O

A year later James knelt in front of Sirius's grave and cleared away the dead leaves and flowers. He set fresh flowers on the tombstone and tried to control his tears.

No one was the same after Sirius's death. Lily often sat in front of the common room fire for hours, many times crying silently. Peter had lost any ounce of coordination he once had. He was failing most of his classes. Remus had taken it especially hard. He forbid James and Peter to accompany him on his transformations, which were worse than ever. He hardly slept or ate and avoided James and Peter like the plague. His parents were considering pulling him out of school.

James traced the name on the tombstone with his finder. "You left a gaping hole in my heart, lined with thorny edges. You left us all that way. Sometimes I think I'm not going to make it. Like I can't get out of bed in the morning. Everything reminds me of you. Going on with life is so hard…it's painful, Sirius. But I get through each day and it doesn't kill me, and I think 'maybe tomorrow will be a little bit easier.' I'll never be the same again, Sirius. But I'll try. I'll live for you."

A rustle of wind stirred the flowers at James's feet and he watched as a pedal was carried of, swirling in the air.

O.O.O.O

_A/N: It is done…my first completed fic. I'm in a very sad mood at the moment. Sorry for killing him off you guys, I know none of you wanted that but that's the way the cookie crumbled. I'm going to go get some chocolate. Please don't kill me. _

_And I am very sorry to all my reviewers. I don't think anyone wanted Sirius to die. cowers under desk I'm thinking about writing an AU fic about the marauders when they get out of school. Or maybe one about them getting transported to another place. Just ideas. No promises. Over and out._


End file.
